Can my MBP (late 2013 retina) run 1 external monitor using a miniDisplay to DVI adapter and also run a 2nd monitor using the HDMI to DVI adapter?

I'd like to run two external DELL monitors at the same time, each using a different adapter--one using a minidisplay port to DVI adapter, the other using an HDMI to DVI adapter. I don't want to mirror my desktop, I want to use the monitors as extra monitors, giving me extra desktop space (for Final Cut, etc.).

I thought of using just two minidisplay port to DVI adapters but I don't want to use up both of the thunderbolt ports on my MBP. I need one for plugging an external hard-drive... Thanks for your help!

1 Answer from the Community

This adapter is Single Link DVI so it should work with displays up to 1920 x 1200 @ 60 Hz.

You didn't say which DELL monitors you want to use. If the DELL display is larger than that (2560 x 1440 or 2560 x 1600) then there's a couple options:

1) If the DELL display has DisplayPort than use that from the mini DisplayPort connector of your MBP.
2) The DELL display might accept a single link DVI signal from the HDMI port that is faster (up to 340 MHz) than standard DVI (up to 165 MHz) to get up to 2560 x 1600 @ 60 Hz.
3) If the DELL has a Dual Link DVI input, then you'll need a HDMI to DisplayPort adapter, then a DisplayPort to Dual Link DVI adapter, since no-one makes a single link HDMI to Dual Link DVI adapter (they might have a Dual Link DVI connector but only use the Single Link DVI signal). Chaining those two adapters doesn't work with my Apple 30" Cinema Display in macOS. They work better in Linux. Maybe Apple needs to fix their drivers to make them handle this case.

An external Thunderbolt hard drive might have two Thunderbolt ports. You could connect a DisplayPort Adapter to that.

I was able to connect two 2560 x 1600 @ 60 Hz displays to a single MacBook Pro 2015 Thunderbolt 2 port by using a Thunderbolt 3 to Dual DisplayPort adapter connected to a Thunderbolt 3 hard drive, connected to the MBP using a Apple Thunderbolt 3 to Thunderbolt 2 adapter. The Dual DisplayPort adapter also supports two 4K @ 60 Hz displays, but Thunderbolt 2 supports only one 4K @ 60 Hz display. There is also a Thunderbolt 3 to Dual HDMI adapter which does up to 4K @ 30 Hz for each display. I couldn't find a Thunderbolt 2 to Dual DisplayPort or HDMI adapter though hence the need for the Thunderbolt 3 devices. This required a Thunderbolt 3 enabler patch to macOS since the devices I used were created before the MacBook Pro 2016.